No U.S. President has ever made an official visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In fact, only seven U.S. Presidents have ever journeyed to Africa while in office, cumulatively making stops in just 14 of 53 countries (26 percent). Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the first in 1943, and Bill Clinton has visited the most countries with ten. Egypt has been the most common destination, followed by Morocco and Nigeria. Understandably, secretaries of state charged with negotiating and carrying out U.S. foreign policy have visited twice as many African countries as U.S. Presidents, or 30 of 53 nations. For comparison, U.S. Presidents have visited 24 of 47 Asian countries, or 51 percent, and secretaries of state 45 of 47, or 96 percent.

United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC)www.monuc.orgGet updates on efforts to quell the ongoing violence in DRC and hold national elections from the largest UN peacekeeping mission in the world.

International Crisis Groupwww.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfmAccess background papers on the Ituri region and the DRC as a whole as well as updates on the current political situation.

Human Rights Watchwww.hrw.org/docMore than three million people have died in the Congo's civil war; rape and torture are common weapons in this struggle for control of a region and its natural resources. Learn about these issues in detail and what you can do to defend human rights in the DRC.

Albertine Rift Programwww.albertinerift.orgThe Wildlife Conservation Society has been working in the Albertine Rift area for 50 years to protect the biodiversity in this stretch of rich ecosystems bordering five countries (DRC, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Tanzania).

Ituri Forest Peoples Project209.200.101.189/programs/ituri.cfmCultural Survival established this project to help provide Pygmy hunter-gatherers and village farmers with basic education and health care in the lawless, war-ravaged section of northeastern Congo. Read feature articles and news briefs on efforts to protect Pygmy rights and culture.